October 21, 2010 12:30 pm

College students who graduated in the United States in 2009 left school with an average of $24,000 in student debt, up 6 percent from 2008, according to a report out today from the Project on Student Debt.

The report followed students from four-year public and not-for-profit colleges and universities.

State averages vary from approximately $13,000 to $30,000, and per-campus averages from $3,000 and $61,500, the report said.

The highest debt was recorded by students graduating in the District of Columbia, where the average debt was $30,033. The lowest was in Utah, at $12,860.

Graduating students in Washington carried an average debt of $19,780, placing the state 40th nationally. Fifty-eight percent of graduating state seniors in the study left school with debt, the report said.

Among state institutions, here’s a look at average debt of 2009 graduates and the proportion of the school’s graduates with debt:

The report was compiled by the Institute for College Access and Success, an independent, non-profit organization based in Oakland, Calif. It is supported, according to its website, by organizations including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and Ford Foundation.